By Mike Crawley
Lagos - Islamic sharia law is making inroads into the predominantly Christian south of Nigeria at a time when religion is expected to be a crucial issue in looming general elections.
Muslim officials have set up sharia courts in Lagos, Nigeria's biggest city, and in the southwestern state of Oyo, to deal with such civil matters as divorce, inheritance questions and contract disputes.
The courts are for Muslims only and do not extend to criminal matters, which caused much controversy in the 12 predominantly Islamic northern states that implemented sharia - canonical law based on the teachings of the Qu'ran and the traditions of the Prophet - over the past four years.
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'We have told non-Muslims that sharia will not be extended to them' "The course is clear to the introduction of sharia to those states in the south that have significant Muslim populations," says Lateef Adegbite, head of Nigeria's Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs. "There is no constitutional or legal impediment to the extension of Sharia to the south."
Adegbite says the Qur'an tells Muslims to follow sharia, so Muslims need to have access to sharia courts to live a full Islamic life.
"We have repeatedly told non-Muslims that sharia will not be extended to them," Adegbite told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa. "The application of sharia to the Muslims should not be their concern."
Nigeria's constitution gives Muslims the right to practice their religion freely and that includes organising sharia courts, says Is-Haq Akintola, director of Lagos-based Muslim Rights Concern.
"We're not talking about introducing criminal sharia in southern Nigeria at all," says Akintola. "We've seen how it created doubts and gulfs between the people and generated fear."
'They derive pleasure in cutting the hands of poor people' Violent protests in Christian enclaves marked the introduction of sharia law in some states of northern Nigeria.
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